AT THE EMMYS DINNER, BLACK TIE AND TALENT

By Gigi AndersBy Gigi AndersJune 18, 1990

The 32nd annual Washington Emmy Awards presentation Saturday evening was, as in years past, a black-tied long day's journey into night. It began at 6:30 with cocktails, then moved on to dinner at 7:30 and actually got underway at 9. The final award -- Extended News Coverage -- was not handed out until nearly midnight.

Not that any of the 500 members of the D.C. chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) present in the Sheraton Washington Hotel's ballroom minded, particularly. You sort of get to expect it.

For example, listen to the following exchange in the ladies' room:

Yawning woman in a plunging black V-neck number, checking out her rear in the mirror: "God, this show has, like, no personality, you know?"

Another yawning woman in a strapless iridescent violet mini-dress, sitting on a love seat, checking out her decolletage: "Really. But it's always like this. It's like the whole world gets an award."

Well, maybe not the whole world. But certainly in the world of local TV news, it was WUSA (Channel 9) that came out on top with 43 golden angel statuettes (including the Extended News Coverage award to Mark Feldstein, Bruce Johnson and Diana Sperrazza, none of whom showed up, for "Marion Barry Investigation"). WJLA (Channel 7) was a close second, with 38 Emmys (if you include cameraman Steven C. Affens's impressive Ted Yates Award). WRC (Channel 4) scored 30 awards. WETA (Channel 26) and local independent filmmakers got six Emmys each.

Rosenthal, Greene & Campbell, a local advertising agency, got three. Gallaudet University got two, as did WTTG's Channel 5 (if you count the Board of Governors Award given posthumously to Betty Endicott, news director and general manager at WTTG, who died last summer). WDCA (Channel 20) and WFTY (Channel 50) each got one. The NATAS Student Achievement Award went to Dion Tulloch of Howard University, whose 30-second spot "Reaching Our Potential" aired on WJLA.

(The stations and their individual staffers each submit nominations by category to the D.C. NATAS chapter, which sends them on to other national chapters for scoring. The scores are tabulated by a local accounting firm and evaluated by a NATAS committee here.)

During the ceremony, one presenter suggested that WRC's Susan Kidd was separated at birth from Marsha Warfield (of "Night Court"). "I don't know whether to be insulted or happy," Kidd said. WTTG's Steve Buckhantz, whose station didn't exactly sweep any category, insisted, "Luckily, we have 'The Simpsons'!" WJLA's Joe Hansard, who won a couple of Emmys for sports segments and sports editing, delivered a hysterical, deadpan acceptance speech a` la comedian Steven Wright. "I'd like to thank my parents for sending me to broadcasting school," he said, solemnly pausing after each word. Otherwise, he said he'd have wound up with the kind of job that would require him to say, "You want lids on these?"

Veteran newsman Bryson Rash, who won the Talent: Host/Interviewer/Moderator Emmy for WETA's "Landmarks and Legends," looked like a refined elder statesman with his silvery hair and pale pink rose boutonniere. He was arm-in-arm with multiple Emmy winner Lea Thompson of WJLA, who said of her escort, "I wouldn't be here without him." "I hired her," explained Rash.

"This is a wonderful night," said Thompson, "a long night, a long mile." "I retired," Rash said. "Then I flunked retirement!" And to what does he attribute his longevity? "Yeah, Bryson," asked Thompson. "How come you've lived so long?"

"Good antecedents," he quipped back, grinning all the way.

The Ted Yates Award, given to someone who has demonstrated outstanding professional and personal qualities, was presented by WJLA's John Harter to WJLA's Affens, who was there with wife Patty and son Scott. "What touches me," said Affens, "is that {this award} is from the heart. So it's just dawning on me how many people had to approve this. ... Incredible. ... I hope my work continues to justify my award."

First-time winner (for News Segments: Hard News) Don Williams, who produced "Bishop Walker Funeral" for WRC, would have won hands-down for the Most Nattily Attired Male Award, had there been one. In his left ear he wore a tiny diamond, whose sparkle complemented the rhinestone deco-style pin he wore instead of a bow tie. His tux was black, his socks were black with white polka dots and his loafers were black patent leather, embossed with an alligator print. "We just changed clothes in a service station restroom on our way here," he said of his and wife Ainsley's appearance. (They'd literally just returned from their honeymoon in Cancun.) "I'm interested in the undercurrents and emotions behind a story and in presenting it in a way that latches on to you, bringing it to life. It's akin to 'The Three Bears.' "

How's that?

"There's a definite beginning, middle and end. Otherwise, the story is lost, incomplete. My mission -- if you want to call it that -- is to tap into those things everybody probably feels but doesn't think about. Without that, it's just radio. Radio with pictures."